Possibilities Outside Ivy League: The Obsession With Elite Universities And What It Does [VIDEO]

Obviously, Harvard University tops all Ivy League schools in the United States when it comes to application rejections. In fact, last year, it declined 95 percent of its applicants and Stanford University has done almost just the same.

According to Forbes, the "element of humblebragging" is always there whenever the Ivy League universities like Harvard release their admission data. However, Richard Shaw, Stanford's Dean of Admission and Financial Aid, warns school administrators to stay away from this practice. He said that having a low number of admissions is not something to be proud of.

For one thing, they make "the odds look terrifying". Shaw even reminded parents and students that there are "many, many excellent colleges outside Stanford" and other Ivies. As a matter of fact, the "ultra-selective" private schools only serve a tiny share of the educational market.

On another hand, Jeffrey Selingo writes about people's "dangerous" obsession" with "elite universities" or the Ivy league. Sadly, limiting one's perspective to just a few "impossible-to-get-into" colleges affects a person's view of success or even his or her sense of honor. Selingo is the author of "There Is Life After College".

Now, probably the most intriguing part of it is that students try to conform to an ideal instead of being themselves because of these high standards. Thus, instead of working hard to "fit in", students must look for schools that could accommodate their talents and creativities. Once their passions are put into work, academic intelligence is no match. At the end of the day, applicants should choose the one with endless possibilities instead of limited opportunities.

On the other hand, Selingo also wrote in South Coast Today that colleges should start focusing on middle-income families. If administrators do not do that now, then US campuses would fail to showcase the economic diversity of America. Currently, those who belong to the middle class have no right to rant about how hard it is to pay for college because they will always be compared to the low-income people.

Cheat Sheet, meanwhile, reported how to distinguish someone from the middle class. Apparently, a good job with an annual salary of $24, 042 to $161,277 is definitely neither low-income nor high-income. Also, owning a home, being able to save, and having a college education are indications of middle-class qualifications.